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Any idea about why the baking soda paste may have caused the problem? I use baking soda and have left it on overnight without any problems, but I use a thinner paste, almost a slurry, and only a thin coat. Maybe two tablespoons of soda and enough water to let me work it over the board.

I just saw the other thread. I've had similar results with baking soda overnight on a cherry board. It left dark splotches on the heartwood and discolored the sapwood, leaving it almost grey colored. I thought it might be a property of the cherry wood since i know it darkens over time with exposure to UV, the staining looks like a chemical reaction. I was able to lighten the stains somewhat with diluted bleach in a spray bottle. I'll try sanding or planing the board eventually

On a positive note. The baking soda treatment is the only thing that has really worked at removing onion and garlic odors.

I pasted mine last night and put a little 50% bleach on it today and wiped it right off. The smell of garlic is gone so I am pleased. I'll have to rinse it a few good times tonight and tomorrow and seal it back up should be as good as new.

Yeah, the leftover taste issue is why I managed to convince myself to get more than one BoardSmith board. Probably not absolutely necessary, but I'm certainly enjoying having more than one great board to work on

I did the same thing. I cook with garlic and/or onions at least once a day. Waiting a day for a baking soda-type treatment is more than a little irritating. I just live with a little garlic/onion smell. BTW, my boards all look great even after experimenting with baking soda. Using a peroxide or bleach-type "cleaner" can kill some smells but it can also just change the smells since it really isn't "cleaning" anything.

Btw, I was talking to a custom board maker in Canada the other day and he recommended treating a new board with mineral oil but then using some beeswax mixture before finally putting it to use. The beeswax provides just enough protection to reduce penetration of garlic oils. It won't prevent all absorption, but gives some resistance so a prompt cleaning will help prevent most oils from absorbing. Once you notice the water not beading on the board, reapply some beeswax/oil.

I know a lot of people use some beeswax on their boards, and I was wondering if they felt that adding this wax to the wood helped reduce odor absorption.

With that said, on one of my boards I didn't use any beeswax solution, and the board is starting to smell of garlic pretty bad right now. The other day, I cut some strawberries and they had a garlic taste. That was really disgusting.

So here is my action plan from this thread and others: I am going to (1) cover my board in salt (overnight for each side) to draw out as much of the existing oil as possible (2) do one of those slurry washes with baking soda but not the over night treatment (3) re-sand the surface (4) re-oil everything to make the wood happy again and (5) apply 20% beeswax/oil solution to protect against future smells.

Does that sound good, or does anyone have a further courses of action?

k.

There is a cult of ignorance in the United States...nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that “my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” -- Isaac Asimov